Best Massage Music Ever? Maybe… Michael Strening Jr.

This week I have a great product to share with you, and a great story to boot.

I recently opened my email and read this:

“Massage therapy saved my music career.”

I read on.

The email was from Michael Strening Jr., a Chicago-area musician. He introduced me to his music and told me a fantastic story about why he wrote music for massage.

The first thing I did after reading my email was check the reviews of his music. I check reviews on everything I buy online. This is probably why I like to review massage products so much. The last album he released was in 2009 (Falling Water / Music for Relaxation). The ratings on iTunes: 15 ratings, 5/5 stars. Not bad. I listened to some samples and knew I needed to hear more.

I received Michael’s CD’s in the mail. I hurried to load them onto my iPod before work. I like to listen to new music before I play it for session, but I had already listen to samples on his website and I was actually too excited to wait.

Over a decade ago, Michael experienced nerve irritation in his carpal and cubital tunnels. This is devastating for anyone, but especially for a composer/pianist. Michael took a year off from playing and during this time work closely with a massage therapist. The combination of his time off and massage therapy proved to be successful. Micheal was able to return to playing professionally, and has continued to play for the last decade. In 2009, he released Falling Water / Music for Relaxation, as CD of piano solos “specifically composed, performed, and recorded as a tool for massage therapy, relaxation, meditation, and healing.” This is the album that has such great reviews on iTunes.

Last month he released Mist and Sand/ Music for Relaxation, another compilation of songs specifically for massage. Again, he worked in collaboration with massage therapists and psychologists to create this album.

I am not a professional music reviewer, but I will tell you why these albums are great for a massage. Both albums are piano solos. Nothing more. Simple and easy. Both albums are over 75 minutes. One is not better than the other in my opinion, both are equally impressive. This is music a majority of clients will appreciate. It is not New Age, ocean noises, Celtic drums, Indian guitar, or a babbling brook. Just beautiful piano solos. Like a massage, the music is soothing, therapeutic, and calming from beginning to end.

My personal test was assessing the noise level in my room. My clients were quiet, always a good sign. Some spoke up to ask what we were listening to during the session. When I asked others what they thought, I received nothing but positive comments. The music let my clients relax and let me work in peace. I love that and I think you will love it too.

Thank you Micheal for having the confidence to share your music.

Thank you for giving another tool for relaxation.

Thank you for sharing your story and helping us see that massage therapy is powerful.

We are lucky to have you on our side.

Go to Amazon, read the comments on this post, listen to the samples, buy the albums, and enjoy!
Buy Micheal’s first album, Falling Water, on Amazon

About Ivy Hultquist

Thank you for reading this post! In addition to writing here at Massage and Bloggywork, I write specifically about barefoot massage at Ashiatsu.net, as well as teach massage continuing education at Advanced Massage Techniques.

I am always on the look out for new music, I find it difficult getting new music as sometimes they sound great on the little sample you get, but once you have received it you find out that it is quite monotonous or half way there is a massive cymbal crash and both me and the client jump :).

As I type I am listening to the preview on Itunes and it’s beautiful! will be downloading straight away!

We normally listen to Tony O’Connor during our massage sessions. He is good but maybe we need to try something new just for the sake of change? Thanks for the share and we will see how our clients respond to Michael Strening Jr.

I am a licensed massage therapist and continuing education provider who loves to talk about all things massage. To learn more about my passion for massage therapy and my path into the field: Read More…